Then check out The Anti-Spyware Test Guide at URL by Eric Howes at URL:http://spywarewarrior.com/asw-test-guide.htm

During the tests, which pitted the top 20 anti-spyware scanners against spyware that comes embedded with peer-to-peer programs such as Grokster, Howes said he discovered that the malicious applications were capable of blocking the scanners.

"In the second and third group of tests, one of the installed programs prevented the anti-spyware scanners from running on reboot," he said, noting that reboots are a common method used by anti-spyware scanners to remove stubborn spyware and adware that remain in memory on a PC.

The results rated the Giant AntiSpyware detection tool as the best of the 20 scanners tested, but even then, Howes said the software detected only 100 out of 134 "critical" files and registry entries.

During the first round of tests, Howes found that McAfee's AntiSpyware rated very poorly, picking up only 56 of 134 critical detections. InterMute's SpySubtract (72/134), Aluria's Spyware Eliminator (42/134), Lavasoft's Ad-Aware (82/134) and the popular Spybot Search & Destroy (40/134) also scored very low on detecting "critical" files.

Once it sinks in that the most common approach most folks swear by, i.e... Read more

A:Think SpyBot S&D and Ad-Aware SE are enough?

I have seen Anti-Spyware Test Guide but wow that Benjamin Edelman's website was great. I never seen that before.

I downloaded Ad-aware 6.0 Personal and Spybot S&D to my computer using XP Prof. Installation were good and icons appeared on my computer screen.

However, I cannot run both of them because when I double click on these icons, Ad-aware is stuck because of "not responsive program" while Spybot does not appear on the screen. Can anyone tell me why? Thanks a lot.

I ran AA 6.0 for the first time this morning. It found 48 entries, wow I was thinking this really is an improved Tool. Turns out 39 of the entires AA 6.0 found were backup files I have stored in Spybot Recovery. Is this a common result of AA 6.0 finding Spybot backup files anyone may have come across? 8 entries were cookie files that I deleted and the last one was a Reg Key that I sent to the Ignored List. I then rebooted and ran AA 6.0 again. It found only 1 entry, unfortunately it was the same Reg Key that I sent to the Ignored list. I then ran Spybot to get a comparison. Spybot found 10 usage files and 0 spyware files.

To me the new AA 6.0 has alot of bells and whistles but the results are the same as AA 5.83 finding 1 file to every 10 that Spybot finds. Plus AA 6.0 takes about 10 mins to run compared to 2 mins for Spybot. Does anyone feel the same way I do?

Hi,I wrote previously about running startups/cat-e.html.after running program it returned upwards of 94 spyware ,virus,etc problems which should be removed.i ran spybot,ad-aware, avg and i also have zone alarm installed.Only ad-aware returned four problem files which i quarantined.Could you please suggest why my installed programs failed to detect any of these problems and suggest a solution.Iwas advised to submit a hjt log which is includedthankyou for your help.Logfile of HijackThis v1.99.0Scan saved at 16:05:58, on 04/05/2005Platform: Windows 98 SE (Win9x 4.10.2222A)MSIE: Internet Explorer v6.00 SP1 (6.00.2800.1106)Running processes:C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\KERNEL32.DLLC:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\MSGSRV32.EXEC:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\SPOOL32.EXEC:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\MPREXE.EXEC:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\MSTASK.EXEC:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\ZONELABS\VSMON.EXEC:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\mmtask.tskC:\WINDOWS\EXPLORER.EXEC:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\SYSTRAY.EXEC:\PROGRAM FILES\BILLP STUDIOS\WINPATROL\WINPATROL.EXEC:\PROGRAM FILES\GRISOFT\AVG FREE\AVGCC.EXEC:\PROGRAM FILES\GRISOFT\AVG FREE\AVGAMSVR.EXEC:\BILLS UTILITIES\ZONEALARM\ZLCLIENT.EXEC:\PROGRAM FILES\NIKON\PICTUREPROJECT\NKBMONITOR.EXEC:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\WMIEXE.EXEC:\PROGRAM FILES\MICROSOFT OFFICE\OFFICE\1033\MSOFFICE.EXEC:&... Read more

A:spybot/ad-aware/avg

You are using an outdated version of hijackthis. Please download the newer version.Download HijackThis from:HijackThis Download SiteThen post a new log

I've seen debates here in the forums about which is better, Ad-aware or Spybot, for removing adware/spyware. Here is a pretty good review of them both at Flexbeta. There's a list of some of the applications that they installed and tested. I was amazed that there are some that I have used, that are supposed to stop some of what they are installing, ie, Panicware.

Thanks to Warp2Search for this info.

A:Ad-aware vs Spybot

SpyBot hands down is better because it detects everything that AdAware does and more, which makes using AdAware pretty pointless. Use SpyBot along with Hijackthis and you should be good to go. Those are the two best tools that I have found.

Hi.I ran Ad-Aware and it removed over 70 unwanted programs. I had to reboot for it to remove one stubborn item. I then ran SpyBot and it found 31 more problems. I cleaned them both. Everything seems to be working fine now but when I booted up this morning, I received a message window which said,

108searchassistant has been inadvertantly removed by a thirdparty program. You may not run properly while using the internet. It gave me three options: 1. To reinstall 108searchassistant. 2. To reinstall and run a cleanup program of searches ledt behind, and 3. To remind me later. I chose #3 just in case this is a ligit program which Ad-Adware or SpyBot removed. Is 108SearchAssistant spyware or a necessary compontant to use the internet properly. I am using IE6.

Looks like there is still some link to 108searchassistant still hanging around that was not removed by Spybot or AdAware. That message is just a nag screen that hopes you will reinstall it.

You may want to run HiJack This and post a log in the HJT forum. Instructions and download locations available there.

If you are using Internet Explorer suggest you do this:

In Internet Explorer go to Tools>Internet Options>Advanced and take the check mark from Enable Install On Demand (Internet Explorer) and Enable Install On Demand (Other). The consequence of this will be that you will begin to see Security Warnings when something tries to install on your computer. Unless it is something you want to install (which happens rarely) always say no.

I'm having a problem with Sypbot-Search & Destroy. The program never finishes its scan. It stops about 3/4's of the way through the files and then an "Error during check" ZWAX(Ungultiger Datentyp fur") shows up with whatever else is wrong. This morning, I tried to uninstall Spybot and then re-install-it wouldn't completely uninstall. Along with this problem, we experience about:blank, freeweb pages, accounts frozen and also 200-page not found! I run McAfee Virus scan, Ad-awre SE and Sypbot-S&D every week. The only thing detected are tracking cookies. I would appreciate any help you could give me. Thank you.

A:Ad-aware SE/Spybot

Run both Adaware and Spybot Search and Destroy from safe mode, updating each program before you scan and setting both to fix what they find.*AdAware SE: http://www.lavasoftusa.com/software/adaware/*Spybot S&D: http://www.safer-networking.org/en/index.htmlAfter doing that I suggest you post a HijackThis log for assistance with your problem.Your mention of about:blank and freeweb pages shows that you do have an infection.Read the pinned post in the HijackThis forum, here Carefully read and follow all directions explicitly.Following instructions run a log, and post it in the appropriate HJT forum, at this link. Do not attempt to fix anything by yourself using Hijack This yet. A member of the HJT Team will analyze the log, make recommendations and offer assistance.It may take a period of time to get a response to the log you posted because the members of the HJT Team are kept very busy. Pleasebe patient as this team is manned by volunteers. They will help you as soon as possible.NOTEOnce you have posted your HJT log, please DO NOT make any additional posts in the HJT forum until you get a response from a member of the HJT expert team.The first criteria they have when looking for logs that need replies are posts showing 0 replies. If you make an additional post, it will show as having 1 reply. A team member, looking to see if a reply has been made might well assume another HJT Team member is already assisting you and might not open the thread to respond. So, make your... Read more

Coincidence or not, after uninstalling SS&D, I'm now free to spread havic and pandemoneum across the 'net. Seriously, don't know what type of conflict was going on, but all is better w/o it on my particular system; Win98SE, w/ ZoneAlarmPro, and avast! Maybe there is some unfriendly code lurking between these programs?

My name is Billy O'Neal and I will be helping you. (Billy or Bill is fine, if you like.)
Please give me some time to look over your computer's log(s).
Please take note of the following:In the meantime, please refrain from making any changes to your computer.Also, even if things appear to be running better, there is no guarantee that everything is finished. Please continue to check this forum post in order to ensure we get your system completely clean. We do not want to clean you part-way up, only to have the system re-infect itself. :)If you do not understand any step(s) provided, please do not hesitate to ask before continuing. I would much rather clarify instructions or explain them differently than have something important broken.Finally, please reply using the button in the lower left hand corner of your screen.Old topics are closed after 3 days with no reply, and working topics are closed after 5 days. If for any reason you cannot complete instructions within that time, that's fine, just put a post here so that I know you're still here. We get a lot of people who simply leave, and if there is no contact for that amount of time I will have to assume you have "vanished" .We need to run a Scan with DDSPlease download DDS, and save it to your desktop, from one of the following mirrors:This is a mirrorThis is another mirror

Disable any type of "Script Blockers" or "Script Protection" installed ... Read more

Hi, just a quick question. I have turned off the firewall that came with my new computer. I am using Windows XP. Do I need to install Sygate also or will Spybot and Ad Aware be enough to keep me protected?

Hi,I've heard that Spybot S&D, andAd-AwareSE are becoming ineffective. Also, they should be uninstalled and better programsdownloaded. Has anyone heard this to be true? If so, what other programs are available. I have Win 98SE.chuck.

Are these programs relevant today? I've mainly switched over to tools like Superantispyware and Malwarebytes, but just curious if they are still good tools to be used.

A:ad-aware and spybot

mvps.org is no longer recommending Spybot S&D (or Ad-Aware) due to poor testing results. See here - (scroll down and read under Freeware Antispyware Products). Further, most people don't understand how to use Spybot's TeaTimer and that feature can cause more problems than it's worth. TeaTimer monitors changes to certain critical keys in Windows registry but does not indicate if the change is normal or a modification made by a malware infection. The user must have an understanding of the registry and how TeaTimer works in order to make informed decisions to allow or deny the detected changes. If you don't have understanding how a particular security tool works, then you probably should not be using it. Additionally, TeaTimer may conflict with other security tools which do a much better job of protecting your computer and in some cases it will even prevent disinfection of malware by those tools.As for Ad-Aware.Ad-Aware...have gone into a downhill spiral over the past five years and recently sold the company to Solaria... Majorgeeks stopped listing Ad-Aware as a “pick” some years ago as we watched the quality of the company slip over the years...it can’t stand up to the new generation of anti-spyware applications...What does the future hold for Ad-Aware?Lavasoft ControversiesAlso read Lavasoft Turning to the Dark Side? written by a former volunteer (now a MVP) who provided support for Ad-Aware but no longer uses the program.More effective alternatives are M... Read more

I have both ad-aware6 and spybot, and I have to say that when I scan the system with ad-aware I usually get no results, then I do the same with spybot and I get a few bugs, usually things like: hitbox, doubleclick or avenueA.... Plus I have the feeling that Ad-aware speed down the system. Is it really useful to have it?

I am writing because I want to install a program that clean my system of all the spyware programs, but I have to decide between Ad-aware or spybot search and destroy, and I need some help because I don't know wich ones is better.

If somone could help me deciding, or if someone have a good recomendation of any other program, that could help me too.

A:Ad-aware vs Spybot

Normally people run both. Why do you have to decide between them?

Its not like antivirus or firewall software, which runs all the time in the background and means you should only have one of each running.

AdAware and SpyBot are only run when you start them. Then you close them afterwards.

I would appreciate any help you can offer in ridding my friends computer of spyware and hijacks. I have installed and run (several times) Spybot, Adaware and Norton Antivirus 2005. Each identified and deleted many spyware culprits but still numerous pop-ups occur even when not surfing the web. The HijackThis log follows. Thanks in advance for your assistance.Logfile of HijackThis v1.97.7Scan saved at 11:25:38 PM, on 10/13/2004Platform: Windows XP SP2 (WinNT 5.01.2600)MSIE: Internet Explorer v6.00 SP2 (6.00.2900.2180)

Hello, I have been using vista on new computer, have made a search, and have not answered my questions. In my old XP days you recommended instaling and using AVG antivirus, ad aware, and spybot. As soon as my complimentary norton ran out, and wanted renuel, I removed it, and replaced with AVG free, and am using windows defender. Is this adequate, and if not what are present recomendations? Thank you in advance for your help.Walt

A:spybot/ad aware?

For anti virus, I use AVG free on Vista, and so far havent had a prob. Seems to be one of the better ones to use Ad Aware and spybot are still, I think, some of th ebetter blockers; if yo uwant one, they are probably as good as anything else.So yes, keep using them! Protection value is pretty high, but I would say do a manual sweep every so often, as some of th efunctionality on the free versions is disabled

This is getting ridiculous! I've already gotten rid of the mysearch and whazit toolbars last night but there don't seem to be any easy solutions to fixing this one. And, I do NOT have this "round icon in the taskbar" that I can supposedly right click on to uninstall. All of the ones there are completely familiar. Spybot and Ad-aware detected parts of it at first, then I guess cleaned up those parts, but the toolbar is still working after reboot. They aren't detecting anything now (Ad-Aware keeps crashing, however, so it hasn't finished a complete scan yet.)

-The affected browser is IE 6.0.28-This toolbar is apparently called aieepdnzfnu. -I'm running XP Home...I'm going to try a System Restore but I'm not sure that will fix this problem.

Also, does anyone know if Opera7 is vulnerable to this? I've been using it since to search for help, which often leads me to pages that Spybot warns me (when I'm using IE at least) are trying to install "c2.lop."

Ive tried everything but nothing will get rid of this trojan on my computer. Everytime I connect to the internet i disconnects two minutes later and an 'x' icon appears on the desktop linking to casino palazzo. Ive reached the end of my rope so please help me and take a look at my HJT log to see if you can find a solution to this problem. Thank you.

I do Tech Suport for an ISP. In the last 3 - 4 weeks I've been getting at least 3 calls per day from people who can not browse after running Adaware / Spybot. According to the customers it worked fine after they ran it and then on the next reboot they can not browse. They can ping out and be pinged just fine. Now the catch is that they also can no longer access the Connection Tab on the Inet Options screen. Inet Options freezes and needs to be closed.

Now I'm just trying to figure out if anybody else has seen this problem and might know what program on the computers might be fixing this.

I hate to have to send people to the OEM for a restore. I'd much rather just fix it and be done with it...

I can no longer get on to MSN money. The site says I need to download the latest update but when I try to do that my computer freezes up. I suspect I probably screwed somthing up when I ran Spybot or Ad aware and I tried undoing what I did but I must have missed something.

So I tried to see what was wrong with that... Couldn't find anything to help me with it... I uninstalled AIM and reinstalled AIM and it kept the same error.
(- I do not want to use Trillion. :p)
So I uninstalled it and tryed using Ad-aware SE Personal to try to see if there was anything wrong with my system,(I updated it fully,) and it brought me to the Overwiew of the scan where I selected all objects and... When I pressed Next to clean it, it just froze. It has done that every single time I have used it again. Then on my Spybot S&D program it scans halfway and says:

Then stops. I don't know what that is all about... But I was reading online about the AIM problem and it said it had something to do with Kernel32.dll. I checked and Kernel32.dll was in my SYSTEM32 folder. I didn't really know what to do about that because I think Kernel32.dll was fine... But here is my HJT log... Plz help me fix AIM, Ad-aware and Spybot S&D...

I was wondering, which out of Ad-aware 2007 and Spybot S&D is best for on-demand scanning.

Thanks!

A:Spybot Or Ad-aware As On-demand

Spybot S&D.Although it has a new look, Ad-aware 2007 does not seem to offer much in major improvements with its scanning.mvps.org is no longer recommending Spybot S&D due to poor testing results and no longer recommending Ad-Aware due to the ever increasing amount of problems. See here. (scroll down to the note)

(Running on Windows XP Professional)It all started when I got DSL for my computer...apparently the DSL server did not have any kind of virus protection (oops). I had Spy Falcon downloaded. My internet home page has changed to http://www.necessaryupdates.com/ and the page says spyware detected and my personal info is colected by [email protected] and it recommends Pest trap, Malware and spy Guard. Then I got a nice little button on the task bar that says "Urgent System Message: Virus. Your computer is infected with last version of internet trojan (iworm_attck_v122.02a). It is highly recommened that you install anti virus software. Click on icon for more info." When I click on it it takes me to a page for Adware Punisher or sometimes Malware.com. So I got McAfee virus scan and McAfee firewall as well as Spyware Killer. I ran all the programs and I assume they worked because nothing new has gotten into the computer that I am aware of. So then I found this wonderful website and found out how to get rid of Spy Falcon. Now Spy Falcon is gone, but I still have that homepage problem and the system message on the taskbar. Sometimes when I try to load the webpage for this site, I get the page that tells you the webpage is unavailable, but it also says this page is "being blocked by spyware click here to get protection" I then downloaded Spybot and ran the program and it said nothing was found. Do I have to run the Hijackthis program now? I read the warnings a... Read more

A:Still Have Spyware After Ad Aware And Spybot:(

Submit a HJT log to our volunteer team of experts for their review and help, rather than attempting to use it on your own. Instructions for submitting it can be found here:http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/t/34773/preparation-guide-for-use-before-using-malware-removal-tools-and-requesting-help/Regards,John

Hello Everyone!I'm looking for some expert help. My computer slowed down drastically in the last day or two. So I updated my SpyBot, Ad-Aware and Norton 2004... ran all three... and all three came back with a long list of items that could not be fixed... even after a restart. I was reading thru some of the threads here, and I would like some advice on what to do next.Should I download and run that HijackThis thing? If so... what does the following instruction mean? "... make sure that you actually extract HijackThis to its own folder. DO NOT run it from within a zip manager (Winzip), as no backups will be saved."I'm not too very computer literate, so please... "explain it to me like I was a six year-old". Just in case... I have a Gateway computer with Windows ME. Thanks to all!babs

First off I enjoy your site & was referred to this site for knowledge and fixes on my two Pc's.I have a XP machine & a Vista.I recently down loaded the Ad-Aware & SpyBot for my XP that was choked down (still need to tweak it) & I am looking for the same two down loads for my Vista. I did a search but must have missed it.Can anyone supply these two down load sites?Thanks,JimEdit: Moved topic from Windows Vista to the more appropriate forum. ~ Animal

A:Ad-Aware & SpyBot for Vista

SpyBot-Search & Destroy ToolsAd-Aware 2008Ad-Aware Free - Anniversary EditionThere ya go, I don't know what version of adaware you wanted but you can find all Spyware Products HERE

Ad-Aware 2007 was installed on my home pc yesterday and Spybot was already on there. Spybot was not removed first. Now my cable modem looks like it's connected and according to my cable company, it is, but internet access does not happen. Also my wireless internet access isn't working. Did all the shutdown, unpluging of router and modem to no avail. Anyone have any ideas??Thanks

A:Ad-aware 2007 & Spybot

It should not matter that you had Spybot on your computer already seeing as most people (including myself) use both at the same time. I would try using the older version of Adaware Se instead of 2007 just because when I used it there were multiple bugs. Did you try playing with the router's settings?

I have used Spybot and Ad-Aware. Some things I am not sure if I should fix or leave them alone. For example, in Spybot it tells you that everything in red should be fixed. Some programs I see in red are things associated with programs like gator , mediaplayer , etc. that I use. Should I just let Spybot fix these known programs along with all the other stuff and on reboot these legitimate program associations will be replaced? The same thing with Ad-Aware, should I let it fix all that it finds and on reboot all necessary things will return?

Ok normally I rely on my brother to fix problems on my pc but even he can't work out whats wrong. I simply cannot run the 2 above files. I also can't run WinRAR. I have windows XP and I try to do a virus, spybot and ad-aware scan at least once evey 2 weeks and I'm worried that these two security programs aren't working.

Can anyone think of anything which may be causing this problem?

Thanks in advance

Claire

A:Help with Ad-aware SE Personal and Spybot SD

Hi and welcome to TSG.What happens when you try to run them?Have you visited their website and tried to update them.Try running them in safe mode..tap F8 at startup..do they work there?

I have a simple question to ask. How do I get Ad-aware and SpyBot to scan the WHOLE computer from one user account. Right now, I have to log onto each user, install Ad-aware and SpyBot, have it scan and then delete what the programs find.

I hope this makes sense.

A:Ad-aware and SpyBot Question

you cannot in XP

the hkcu entries are only available to the logged in user themselves no other accounts

you might be able to do it in safe mode from the default administrators account, but I'm not even sure that will work